Character Information - Who is who?
Because I have created quite a variety of characters, I will now create little cheat sheets before a chapter for the characters who will appear in the chapter, but not for those who haven't. Please open the spoiler if you need some reminders. (Be careful, it can be a spoiler for the chapter!)
Alexander K. Leonandra (Wolf-kin)
* Transmigrated from the Earth and the MC
* The fourth child of the current Leonandra household
* Golden eyes
* Snow-white fur and hair color
Janina M. Leonandra (Wolf-kin)
* The fifth child of the current Leonandra household
* Sister of the MC
* Green eyes
* Black fur and hair color
Marisia S. Leonandra (Wolf-kin)
* Lady of the Leonandra household
* A user of the wild-demon energy
* Mother of the MC
* Golden eyes
* Crimson red fur and hair color
Cross Leonandra (Wolf-kin)
* Personal protector of the lady of the Leonandra household
* Commander of the Leonandra military
* Specialized in sword/shield style
* Greenish-brown eyes
* Chestnut brown fur and hair color
Cloelle Leonandra (Swan-kin)
* Maid of the Leonandra estate
* Personal maid of the MC
* Green eyes
* Black hair and feather color
Francesca Leonandra (Spider-kin)
* Maid of the Leonandra estate
* Personal maid of the MC
* Dark-blue eyes
* Black hair color
...
30 minutes later, in the ballroom
Alexander's stage switched from Janina's room to a smaller ballroom since it was a little crowded. After changing the place, more people came since it was said that the archmage puppy wanted to show something new and unique with magic.
Like on Earth, there was a natural curiosity, even though it was dangerous, as always when alchemy or magic was involved. Most didn't know the difference between them and didn't care. All they knew was that the little noble wanted to show something unique to his little sister that he had worked on for weeks, which had something to do with scaring her.
Alexander worked his ass off for weeks and created the little play as well as he could. There was no way to assemble it spontaneously, as it required ten of his brains to load the power he needed.
How did he overcome this? He made single objects repeatedly in certain places with specific movements. Everything was preplanned and memorized. Like a code with predefined objects while it had multiple variables.
However, even this was difficult and overbearing, so he decided from the beginning on a style that wouldn't be realistic but abstract, so he could have enough wiggle room to fail without anyone noticing.
Like a hard drive, he loaded up on every scene as much as possible and repeated them enough to see them in his dream. He thought he would get sick of it at some point, but the opposite was true. He tried to make it come true with all the possibilities he was given, and he loved it.
Like a video game, there were almost always two options: God mode and Lunatic. God mode was fun since you were given everything and could build and do whatever your heart desired. Lunatic, on the other hand, was a fight to use every single resource to the best of your ability to survive, and this play Alexander planned out was close to Lunatic difficulty.
He walked inside the hall, and behind him were Francesca and Cloelle, dragging a little cart with them, which had various color pastes and a lot of water to ease his conjuring.
There were also more weird things, a horn from a bull monster which he could blow in, or contraptions, which looked like boxes, not in the alchemical sense.
He decided that he needed to create everything out of water and color paste. Otherwise, he would, in the first place, get actors and some clothes for them. This sounded weird, but if he started to use things like costumes for his play, it would seem less fantastical and creative, in his opinion.
He walked to the front of his audience and clapped his hands to get their attention, not that it was needed as they were all focused on him, "Hello, this is a little play for my dear and lovely sister..."
He looked around and continued, "Today will be no danger! So I want everyone to avoid getting aggressive as I will transform this place into a fairy tale!"
He opened his arms wide and, with a smile, said, "NOW ENJOY!"
He prayed that it would all work out like he had practiced thousands of times, and because of this, his skills increased significantly. This sounded like a nice side effect, but he needed to stabilize his body by training longer and harder.
It went so bad that the bracelets were adjusted so he would have the same effect as when he started his whole ordeal because he leveled so much. He ignored his fatigue and sore muscles and concentrated on the play, 'Let's make it at least enjoyable!'
His voice rang, and before anyone could clap, all the magical candles on the chandeliers went out. Fireball contraptions flew around toward the designated stage and shined reddish as he added minuscule amounts of calcium at regular intervals. Otherwise, it would be burned away and return to its original color in seconds if he used it once.
He stepped away to his designated area, and his concentration peaked. He was in his zone. Water and various colored pastes flew toward the middle of the stage and mixed together like a rainbow whirlpool.
Then it slowly settled down to create one thing after the other. A brick wall with a fireplace, furniture, and various items started appearing one after another, all in multiple colors.
It was far from reality and had a very cartoony watercolor style, but he had good reasons for this choice. First and foremost, he couldn't create lifelike images, as he couldn't control too many variables too strictly. Thus, it was very cartoony and wobbly. Second, it was specially designed to seem cute to not scare his sister so he could avoid a mana collar.
Two figures slowly appeared as water and color mixed into the form of a body. One was a dog-kin with floppy ears and a bushy and long tail. She stood taller than the little wolf-kin girl with the red velvet.
The mother held something akin to a basket, glowing from within with many colors as the reddish light fell on it.
Suddenly an old manly but soft voice resounded through the room, "Once upon a time, there was a sweet little girl. Everyone who saw her liked her, but most of all, her grandmother did not know what to give the child next. Once, she gave her a little cap made of red velvet. Because it suited her so well, and she wanted to wear it all the time, she came to be known as Little Red Riding Hood."
Everyone in the crowd looked around, where the voice came from, and saw how Alexander talked through a horn. He could create waves with air, but this neat mana skill, [Mana Vibrations], helped him to manipulate them without straining himself too much. It was a trick he learned while accidentally waking up his big sister from a nap.
After burning through his knowledge about waves and air, he manipulated his voice in the horn before it came out by changing the wavelength. It sounds easy enough, but every little tweak could let him all the wolf-kin in the estate howl if he wasn't careful.
Changing this aspect with fine-tuned machines would be simple, but every little tweak also changed the voice. The horn was also needed to increase the volume so he could conserve as much stamina and willpower as possible.
He also had [Mana Vibrations], which was perfect for making the mana vibrate and, with this, the air, so he would not need to do it directly. This was already enough to strain Alexander's mind massively, which he wholly ignored as he was in the zone.
The mother comically opened her mouth and gave the little girl the basket, "Come, Little Red Riding Hood. Here is a piece of cake and a bottle of wine. Take them to your grandmother. She is sick and weak, and they will do her well. Mind your manners and give her my greetings. Behave yourself on the way, and do not leave the path, or you might fall down and break the glass, and then there will be nothing for your sick grandmother."
Everybody snickered as silently as possible for multiple reasons. Marisia laughed about how she sent her daughter with booze to her grandmother and others about the funny way the mother opened her mouth.
Almost all servants weren't acquainted with theaters or play. At most, when they visited Wolfsteeth, they would watch street performers. So slap-stick and other simple comedy was something relatively new for them.
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The voice of the charming grandfather resounded again in the room while the scene changed towards that of a funny-looking forest, "Little Red Riding Hood promised to obey her mother. The grandmother lived out in the woods, half an hour from the village."
The light became greenish, and everybody could see the wolf-kin girl standing at the forest entrance. A giant, scary-looking human was behind one of the trees, barely hiding and looking at the wolf-kin girl.
As this scene slowly built up, Cross and Marisia were ready to destroy it if Janina had the same reaction as a month ago. The opposite happened; She was fascinated by the play and loved it.
She never saw something like this and treasured every moment. All the comical and wanky figures. The colorful lights and objects which were made out of water and colors. Something in her awoke, but what would she only later find out.
The voice boomed in a thrilling, not-too-scary tone, "When Little Red Riding Hood entered the woods, a human approached her. She did not know what a wicked creature he was and was unafraid of him."
His voice was cracking and deep, like that of an alcoholic chain smoker. Alexander referenced one of his old teachers for this, "Good day to you, Little Red Riding Hood."
Then the little girl's voice was heard, making everyone look at Janina, "Thank you, human."
Janina was surprised and then elated to watch a play where she was the star. Everyone else had mixed feelings about it, but Marisia looked at it sternly, reserving her judgment, though her thoughts differed from what her outer appearance showed, 'Six months will maybe not be enough...'
The human spoke again with overly theatrical gestic, his mouth moved much more strongly, making others laugh, "Where are you going so early, Little Red Riding Hood?"
She answered, with a sweet smile on her face, "To grandmothers."
He inquired after he bent forward, almost touching her with his head, and pointed at the basket, "And what are you carrying under your apron?"
The little girl stepped back and smiled, "Grandmother is sick and weak, and I am taking her some cake and wine. We baked yesterday, and they should give her strength."
The human straightened and looked at her with two upside-down crescent moons for eyes and a vicious smile, "Little Red Riding Hood, just where does your grandmother live?"
She tilted her head, and after tapping her cheek with her index finger multiple times, she answered, "Her house is a good quarter hour from here in the woods, under the three large oak trees. There's a hedge of hazel bushes there. You must know the place."
Then the narrator's voice was heard, which changed to imitate the human one as in thought, "The human thought to himself: Now there is a tasty bite for me. Just how are you going to catch her?"
Then everyone could hear the human voice again as he opened his arms, while the vicious smile became ever wider, "Listen, Little Red Riding Hood, haven't you seen the beautiful flowers blossoming in the woods? Why don't you go and take a look? And I don't believe you can hear how beautifully the birds are singing. You are walking along as though you were on your way to school in the village. It is lovely in the woods."
Everyone in the crowd started murmuring quietly that she should run away or get the guards or the hunter to kill this malevolent creature.
The water and color swirled again, and the scene changed to a clearing where the little wolf-kin girl walked and looked around at the ground. It was colorful. One mistake and all the colors would mix into an ugly, sluggish brown. This was the most challenging part for Alexander.
The girl walked around, sometimes bending over and picking a color that flew into the air, making an ark of paint, and then into her basket, marking the flower she picked.
The narrator's voice was heard, "The Little Red Riding Hood thought if she brought a beautiful bouquet to her grandmother, she would be very pleased. She thought it was still early and she would be home on time, too, so she looked everywhere in the woods for more beautiful flowers."
After she picked all the beautiful flowers in the clearing, she ran to the side, and the scene became wobbly and turned slowly into bubbles.
The bubbles flew into the air and slowly settled down again, creating another scene of a little bedroom, with an old female wolf-kin lying on the bed and a door towards the side. On the outside of the bedroom was the forest.
The light changed to a darker red, and everyone could see how the scary human manifested before the little door. He knocked on the door with a banging sound, which Alexander recreated, and the door comically bent inwards so much it was a wonder that it didn't fly open.
A new voice of an old woman could be heard, "Who's there?"
Then the raspy voice of the human sounded, which tried to imitate the little girl, "Little Red Riding Hood. I'm bringing you some cake and wine. Open the door for me."
Everyone laughed out loud in the ballroom. Some maids even started wheezing. Marisia was not and only looked at Janina, who was also laughing in tears.
The grandmother called out, "Just press the latch. I'm too weak to get up."
The human pressed the latch, and the door opened. He stepped inside, went straight to the grandmother's bed, and ate her up.
Everyone laughed again as it was so nonsensical how he ate her. He took her, rolled her into a ball, opened his mouth wide, and threw her inside. After chewing for a good second, he spat out her clothes and put them on.
Afterward, he lay down in bed. After a second of observing the scene, laughter boomed in the room, and some servants fell from their chairs.
The human had a tiny grandmother cap on his head with little, half-broken glasses on his nose. His dirty boots protruded through the blanket and bed as he was too big to fit in, but he put the blanket over the lower part of his face like he was trying to hide.
After a moment, Little Red Riding Hood came to the grandmother's house with a basket full of flowers, represented by a colorful display of slightly swirling blobs of water and color.
When she arrived at the house, she looked confused as the door was open, but she went in very slowly and carefully.
Her voice resounded, "Oh, my God, why am I so afraid? I usually like it at grandmother's."
Then she went to the bed where her grandmother lies.
The narrator's voice resounded, "The Little Red Riding Hood thought that grandmother was lying there with her blanket fully covering her face and looking very strange."
The voice changed to Janina's, "Oh, grandmother, what small ears you have!"
The room started to chuckle.
The human, as grandmother disguised, answered while trying to change his voice to that of a grandmother, "I lost my ears with age, my dear little girl."
The chuckle became louder.
The Little Red Riding Hood asked again while looking to the side, "Oh, grandmother, where is your tail!"
The human answered in his weird voice, "It is in the dresser, my dear."
More laughter could be heard.
She asked again, "Oh, grandmother, what big hands you have!"
The human smile could be seen slightly getting bigger by the crowd, "All the better to grab you with!"
The little girl saw the human's smile become large enough to come out of the blanket, "Oh, grandmother, what a horribly big mouth you have!"
He used now his natural voice, "All the better to eat you with!"
And with that, he jumped out of bed and jumped on top of poor Little Red Riding Hood, but she could avoid him and ran through the room and around the bed while throwing her flowers at him, making him more colorful with every hit.
The light changed periodically every time Little Red Riding Hood hit the human with one of her flowers.
"HELP! SOMEBODY HELP!"
She threw more things at him, slowing him down and coloring him more and more.
She screamed again, "HELP AHHHH!"
Suddenly a new figure emerged from outside the house and ran inside it, yelling in a very familiar voice to everyone in the room, "Who is yelling!"
Everyone looked at Cross, who started to frown.
There stood a hunter. All in brown and with a robin hood cap, feather, and a sword in his hand. He acted when he saw the human in drag chasing a little wolf-kin girl. He stormed towards the villain and hit him. He fell instantly toward the floor.
Cross stood in the crowd and mumbled, "I wish humans were this easy to kill."
The human didn't move, and the hunter looked at the little girl, who made a weird face and yelled, "He ate my grandmother!"
The hunter slowly walked towards the human, took out his sword, opened his stomach, and took out a rainbow-colored ball.
He pulled and pushed the ball till it was reformed into the grandmother.
She stood there, crying and bowing, "Thank you! Thank you so much!"
The narrator's voice resonated in the room, "And like this, Little Red Riding Hood learned her lesson of being more careful around strangers."
Like this, everything in the scene slowly dissolved into colorful water bubbles and flew around the crowd before landing as a brown and black sludge in various buckets. There was no way Alexander could separate them anymore.
The crowd clapped and laughed, it was a success, and Alexander slowly came out of his zone and felt an enormous strain. With this, he instantly dissolved his lights while the normal ones turned on again.
He was sweaty and fell on the chair behind him, 'Shit. I feel like I am on drugs and running a fever.'
As planned beforehand, a healer was beside him and started to immediately heal him, "Mr. Alexander, you should feel much better in a moment."
Alexander nodded and tried to catch his breath. He didn't even know if he could return to his room without someone carrying him, 'It was fun, though.'
He had never felt this alive. It was like a call for him. He never knew what he wanted to do, but he now knew that something like this should be part of his life, 'Was I always this much into something artistic?'
He heard the clapping, laughing, and mumbling at how great it was, and he loved it. He replayed the whole play in his mind and was only partly satisfied as Alexander wanted it to do much more like the original but, for obvious reasons, couldn't. Getting his sister eaten was maybe funny on Earth. Here, on the other hand, he would probably be punished, 'Hopefully, they liked the slap-stick.'
The artist, in puppy form, looked over to the crowd, who talked with each other and were smiling and laughing. He could've sworn that someone called Cross Mr. Hunter, 'Heh, did I create an insider joke?'
Then he saw how his mother and sister came over. No, she was running at him, but his mother, luckily, could see his condition and flashed towards Janina and grabbed her from behind by the little bow she wore around her neck. She whispered something to her, and Janina frowned. They came then over slowly.
It was quite the contrast as Janina hugged him slowly and carefully, "This was great big brother! Can you do it... keugh!"
Before she could say more, Marisia pulled her by the collar more forcefully and looked at her sternly.
Alexander immediately understood, 'Oh, I get it.'
He straightened himself on the chair, "Yeah, just give me more time to build actual stamina..." he also tried to ease his mother, "...it is like training with Sarah and Lori simultaneously, hehe."
Janina jumped back onto him, hugging him, ignoring his disgustingly sweaty appearance, "Yeah! Can I decide what?"
Alexander patted her while looking at his mother, "Do you like it, Mom? I wanted first to make you the hunter, but I thought you would instantly put me in an anti-mana collar, hehe."
She nodded with a smile, ignoring his joke, "It was great, and it was the first time I saw something this fantastic..." she came over and started scratching Alexander softly behind his ear. He liked it, "...but ...are you sure you are ok?"
Before he could calm her down, Cross's roar was heard inside the hall, "ENOUGH! WHOEVER CALLS ME AGAIN A HUNTER, I WILL PERSONALLY SEND YOU TO THE EAST! NOW OUT!"
The crowd dispersed while laughing and talking about the play they saw, and Alexander looked at his little sister. Both laughed out loud.
After a moment, he felt the caring glance of his mother and tried to ease her worries, "I am really all right, Mom. It was really only like training..." He remembered something else to relax her, "...here look, I also wear the bracelets, so I made it even harder on purpose!"
Alexander could understand his mother as the only thing she knew about alchemists or mages was how to behead them as fast as possible if they dared to attack.
Janina spoke again, "Yeah! It was really great!"
With this, the evening ended, and he instantly fell asleep when his head touched the pillow.
Sadly, it wasn't peaceful as he found himself in a skill test, "God fucking dammit."